I live in Winnipeg, MB. I am 61 years old and have been married to Ruth for 37 fantastic years. We have three married children and eleven grandchildren. I am a director with www.mcfcf.org. I am also an ultra-marathon cyclist with a passion and purpose.
About 13 years ago I prayed a prayer that went something like this: “God, you have blessed me with an ability to ride my bike long distances. I want to use it to honor and glorify you. I will do my best and You do the rest.” God has not let me down. It has been quite a ride.
My vision is to be a voice for orphaned and abandoned children rescued by Mully Children’s Family, a street children’s rescue mission in Kenya, Africa. I refuse to accept the common notion that the little bit I can do does not matter in the big picture. God has given me a compassionate love for children I will never even meet.
My goal is to inspire grandparents (and others) to see EVERY destitute or abandoned child as a gift from God, deserving of being cared for and loved, just like we do our own children/grandchildren.
Our involvement with MCF (www.mullychildrensfamily.org) began in 2005, when I transported three teenagers from MCF across Canada in 30 days. They took turns sitting on the back of a modified tandem bicycle. This was the beginning of spreading the Mully name across Canada. This experience and a visit to MCF led to me to respond to a call from God. In 2006, at age 49, I resigned from a 31-year successful career in senior management with Palliser Furniture to volunteer full-time by creating awareness and raising funds for children that have been forgotten by society but not by God. This was not an easy decision and was done with the blessing of our whole family. God kept reminding me of a favorite Bible story of Jesus feeding the multitudes with five loaves and two fish. Our RRSPs and my two legs (my ability to ride my bike) became our basket of five loaves and two fish. When we finally handed them over to God, we had peace. A few friends have helped us personally, simply increasing the time we can do this work. So far we are still ok, and God has blessed our efforts and literally fed hundreds of kids. Since 2006 we have been able to raise over $4 million dollars to help Charles and Esther Mulli raise the world’s largest family.
Other cycling highlights include winning my age category in Race Across America, (RAAM 2008). I also hold the Guinness World Record for the fastest bicycle crossing of Canada (6040km) in 2011 (13 days, 6 hours, 13 minutes). To accomplish this, I was on the bike 20 hours per day and had to manage with about 90 minutes of sleep a night.
Our website www.GrandpasCan.com will give regular updates and allow you to live the adventure with us from the comforts of your home.
A book about my ministry, life, cycling, and experiences launched February 2014. To read more, visit the book page. To order, visit the store page.
If we want less we can give more and then we will receive everything; the joy of knowing that we have made a difference. -Grandpa Arvid
